FOURTH YEAR UNDERGRADUATE
Pina Daher—Irena K. Masha Etkind Memorial Award
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Pina Daher—Irena K. Masha Etkind Memorial Award
About the Award
Masha Etkind Memorial Award:
This award was established in honour of the memory of Masha Etkind by the Masha Etkind Memorial Award Committee; Bridgette Dalima, Joey Giaimo, Mark Gorgolewski, Miljana Horvat, George Kapelos, Lisa Landrum, Jurij Leshchyshyn, Ivan Martinovic, Carlo Parente, Leo Roytman and Vera Straka. The award will provide financial support for undergraduate and graduate students in the Architectural Science program who are in good academic standing, demonstrate financial need and plan to travel as part of an educational program or exchange.
As a fourth-year student in the Bachelor of Architectural Science program at Toronto Metropolitan University, I have come to understand architecture as both a discipline of design and a practice of experience. My time at TMU has been shaped by learning through making, by understanding how ideas become built from and how architecture shapes the way we live and interact with our surroundings.
Third-year studio ASC620 taught us to design through adaptation rather than replacement. Our proposal for the Architectural Science Building Transformation reimagined a space already shaped by generations of students. By preserving its concrete frame and iconic staircase while introducing a lightweight steel addition above, we looked to bridge what the building was with what it can become, a continuation of its story.
Beyond studio work, I’ve embraced architecture as a discipline learned through making. From helping build the parametric chair to crafting custom furniture for the TMU Fashion School’s StyleCircle Magazine 10th Anniversary event, I’ve explored how ideas become tangible experiences. Contributing to bringing the LED sculpture wall installation pieces to College Park gave me an understanding of how design can activate public space. Through my involvement in TimberFever, both as a participant and volunteer, I learned the value of collaboration and the shared process that turns concepts into built form.
The foundation I’ve built at TMU has given me the confidence to carry these lessons beyond the classroom. As I begin my second semester of fourth year at l’École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Paris-La Villette, I look forward to exploring how heritage and innovation coexist within the city itself. Paris offers a rare opportunity to study how layers of history shape the rhythm of everyday life and how the old and the new stand in dialogue rather than opposition.
Through this experience, I aim to deepen my understanding of architectural heritage, seeing it not as something static, but as a living part of culture that adapts and evolves over time. Studying in Paris will allow me to observe how design can honor the past while embracing the future, reflecting the same spirit of appreciation for architectural history that the Masha Etkind Award honors.
For me, this journey is an extension of that vision, a chance to engage directly with historic and cultural contexts, to document how spaces hold memory, and to bring those insights back into what I create. It continues what I’ve learned at TMU, that architecture is not only built, but lived and experienced through the people and places that give it meaning. Each of these experiences has deepened my passion for designing spaces that are welcoming, and this award is especially meaningful as it recognizes Masha Etkind’s dedication to heritage, experiential learning, and the DAS community. I hope to bring these lessons back to my future projects, contributing thoughtfully to the dialogue between history and design
Masha Etkind Memorial Award:
This award was established in honour of the memory of Masha Etkind by the Masha Etkind Memorial Award Committee; Bridgette Dalima, Joey Giaimo, Mark Gorgolewski, Miljana Horvat, George Kapelos, Lisa Landrum, Jurij Leshchyshyn, Ivan Martinovic, Carlo Parente, Leo Roytman and Vera Straka. The award will provide financial support for undergraduate and graduate students in the Architectural Science program who are in good academic standing, demonstrate financial need and plan to travel as part of an educational program or exchange.
As a fourth-year student in the Bachelor of Architectural Science program at Toronto Metropolitan University, I have come to understand architecture as both a discipline of design and a practice of experience. My time at TMU has been shaped by learning through making, by understanding how ideas become built from and how architecture shapes the way we live and interact with our surroundings.
Third-year studio ASC620 taught us to design through adaptation rather than replacement. Our proposal for the Architectural Science Building Transformation reimagined a space already shaped by generations of students. By preserving its concrete frame and iconic staircase while introducing a lightweight steel addition above, we looked to bridge what the building was with what it can become, a continuation of its story.
Beyond studio work, I’ve embraced architecture as a discipline learned through making. From helping build the parametric chair to crafting custom furniture for the TMU Fashion School’s StyleCircle Magazine 10th Anniversary event, I’ve explored how ideas become tangible experiences. Contributing to bringing the LED sculpture wall installation pieces to College Park gave me an understanding of how design can activate public space. Through my involvement in TimberFever, both as a participant and volunteer, I learned the value of collaboration and the shared process that turns concepts into built form.
The foundation I’ve built at TMU has given me the confidence to carry these lessons beyond the classroom. As I begin my second semester of fourth year at l’École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Paris-La Villette, I look forward to exploring how heritage and innovation coexist within the city itself. Paris offers a rare opportunity to study how layers of history shape the rhythm of everyday life and how the old and the new stand in dialogue rather than opposition.
Through this experience, I aim to deepen my understanding of architectural heritage, seeing it not as something static, but as a living part of culture that adapts and evolves over time. Studying in Paris will allow me to observe how design can honor the past while embracing the future, reflecting the same spirit of appreciation for architectural history that the Masha Etkind Award honors.
For me, this journey is an extension of that vision, a chance to engage directly with historic and cultural contexts, to document how spaces hold memory, and to bring those insights back into what I create. It continues what I’ve learned at TMU, that architecture is not only built, but lived and experienced through the people and places that give it meaning. Each of these experiences has deepened my passion for designing spaces that are welcoming, and this award is especially meaningful as it recognizes Masha Etkind’s dedication to heritage, experiential learning, and the DAS community. I hope to bring these lessons back to my future projects, contributing thoughtfully to the dialogue between history and design
